Diagnosed with anemia 2 times when college-aged, my doctor finally gave me a tip: look inside the lower eyelid and if it's pale, not bright pink, you are probably getting anemic.

Iron helps our bodies make hemoglobin which is the part of the blood that carries oxygen to all of our cells. When you are anemic, you have too few healthy red blood cells, which means nothing is getting enough oxygen. Iron is also required for the metabolization of B vitamins - our big energy vitamins - so being low in iron hits your energy stores twice.

Symptoms of Deficiency or Anemia

For more absorption: This powder Vitamin C is non-acidic, gentle on stomachs, provides antioxidants, supports vascular integrity, plays a major role in the formation of collagen, neurotransmitters and hormones. It is a key to immune system suppor.

Individuals will not experience all the symptoms and if the anemia is mild, the symptoms may not be noticible at all.

Reduced resistance to cold - cold fingers and toes

Impaired immunity - colds linger, sores don't heal, catching "everything that comes along"

Reduced appetite - or food just doesn't taste particularly special

Deterioration in athletic performance due to decreased aerobic capacity

Pale skin color and "gray eyes"

irritability

dizziness - on getting up from a prone position or bending over

weakness and fatigue - just can't go as hard or as long

shortness of breath, especially on exertion

sore tongue

brittle nails

rapid heartbeat or heart palpitations

headache - frontal

Iron 15-90mg a day

Iron is necessary for the absorption of B-vitamins. Even slightly low iron levels can make you feel tired, long before you ever become actually anemic. Iron is necessary to build the part of red blood cells that delivers oxygen to your whole body - and oxygen makes you feel alive! (The old Geritol commercials used to market to people with "iron-poor tired blood.")

The RDA of iron for women of childbearing age is 15mg, for men it's 10. Iron is stored well but it is not absorbed well, so if you are anemic to any degree it can take a week to several months to raise iron levels in the blood -- even when you are taking 60mg a day! Intravenous iron is much more effective but not many of us have access to that and doctors generally won't "shoot you up" unless your levels have gotten seriously low.

Iron is hard on your stomach and if you take a 15mg pill it's going to drop down there and possibly start dissolving all in the same place. That can hurt.

Feosol is a great iron product recommended by my doctor, easy on the stomach and well absorbed. Most ordinary iron products contain iron salts that can upset your stomach. Feosol contains pure iron micro particles called carbonyl iron. The 50 mg of elemental iron in a Feosol Caplet is the same amount of elemental iron as in 250 mg of ferrous sulfate USP! So you may only need to take a few a month to keep up with your iron needs.

Vitamin C aids absorption and it's easy to add a powder to your water.

Absorption Facts:

Copper, cobalt, manganese and vitamins A & C are necessary for assimilation.

Vitamin B2 aids absorption

Iron competes with calcium for absorption

Eggs, coffee, tea and bran cereal also inhibit absorption.

Excess manganese hinders absorption.

Ferrous sulfate form of iron destroys vitamin E.


A debate between vegetarians and meat-eaters has waged over which food sources provide the best absorbed iron. There are two forms of dietary iron, heme and nonheme. Heme iron is bound to hemoglobin and myoglobin. It is found in animal products such as red meats and is the most easily absorbed form. Nonheme iron is in plant foods and is poorly absorbed in the elderly due to a lack of hydrochloric acid in the stomach. Unbound nonheme iron gives off pro-oxidants which leads to the formation of free radicals.


Great Food Sources of Iron

Vegetarians definitely win the food source picture for iron!

(Iron amounts have been rounded off.)

Wheatgerm cereal toasted plain 1/2c 5mg

Wheatgerm Honey Krunch or Regular by Kretschmer 1/2c 4mg

Wheatgerm crude 1/2c - 3mg

Wheatgerm Bread -(2slices) 1.5mg

Filet Mignon, lean - about 4 oz. - 3.2mg

1/2 cup cooked lentils - 3.2mg

Blackstrap Molasses - 2 Tablespoons - 7mg

1/2c Pumpkin Seeds roasted -17mg

1 cup drained canned Spinach- 5mg

1 cup frozen cooked drained spinach- 4mg

1/2 cup sunflower Seeds roasted -5mg

1 cup prune juice canned- 3mg

1 cup orange or grapefruit juice canned- 1mg

1/2 pistachios roasted - 2.7mg

1/2 cup chicken breast cooked - .8mg

1 cup shredded Romaine lettus - .6mg

1 cup canned peas drained - 1.6mg

1 cup frozen, cooked, peas drained - 2.4mg

1 large hardboiled egg - .6mg